DNA. X-ray diffraction photograph of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). This image of the beta (b-form) of DNA was obtained by Rosalind Franklin in 1953, the year in which Watson and Crick discovered DNA's structure, aided by Franklin's work. The image results from a beam of X-rays being scattered onto a photographic plate by the DNA. Various features about the structure of the DNA can be determined from the pattern of spots and bands. The cross of bands indicates the helical nature of DNA.